A little thing like being signed to a label hasn’t stopped Pete Dilley getting his music heard.

The 23-year-old County Durham singer-songwriter already has three self-released albums under his belt with another on its way later this month.

Pete, who hails from Shotley Bridge, will be unveiling Rare Loose Ends with a launch party at Shotley and Benfieldside Tennis Club on November 29.

The offering promises to be another melodic mash-up of traditional folk to the more modern acoustic sound that Pete has been honing since childhood.

After falling in love with The Beatles’ music when he was about 11, Pete started going to guitar lessons and he began writing his own songs from learning his first few chords.

Now, he tells me, his songwriting and playing abilities have improved dramatically and he already has three self-released albums to his name.

Among his impressive list of talents he counts being able to play the guitar, harmonica and mandolin too; though most of his songs begin life on the acoustic.

“I suppose it really began after going for guitar lessons for a few years and my father, being a keen guitarist himself, decided I was old enough to attend various folk clubs to play the little pieces I had learnt at my lessons. As a 12-year-old I saw Ralph McTell for the first time and after seeing him perform I became much more interested in singing while playing and trying to write songs of my own.

“Then it’s pretty much been constant attendance of open mic nights and folk clubs which have been very formative in both my tastes and style of playing.”

The young County Durham musician draws influences from traditional folk music and singer-songwriters from the 1960s onwards. He cites key influences as John Martyn, Richard Thompson, Bob Dylan, Neil Young, Leonard Cohen, Nick Drake and Tom Waits who have all helped mould his unique sound over the years.

He says: “My sound has definitely evolved over time. When I started writing and singing I was more into rockier music like The Beatles, Oasis and Led Zeppelin so my musical aspirations would have been going totally down that direction, but being exposed to my parents’ record collection and seeing people like Richard Thompson, I found myself drifting to folk and acoustic music.

“I like to draw on rock music and play electric, but I know that my style and main love is for finger-picked guitar music. I would describe my music as warm, intimate and acoustic music after being fed on a diet of Dylan, The Beatles, Nick Drake, Richard Thompson, Martin Simpson, John Martyn and Neil Young.”

Throughout Pete’s career so far he has already won plaudits by having one of his tracks, called Jack’s Song, selected to feature on a charity CD Folk Delivering Hope in 2008. Since then he has won two songwriting competitions which resulted in him supporting Chloe Hall in 2010 at the Sage Gateshead and Beth Nielsen Chapman earlier this year at the Gala Theatre in Durham.

“People have reacted very positively towards my songs and playing, especially about my picking style,” explains Pete. “I think people are pleased that I don’t use any gadgetry like looping pedals or try to sound like I’m playing a drum at the same time. That can be impressive, but I like to keep things more pure and focused on my songs and the stories they tell.

“The audiences I have played to mostly are of an older generation which probably goes with the genre I fall into so perhaps a lot of people are pleased just to see a fresh face performing for a change, as well as being amongst their number.”

Pete’s fourth album, Rare Loose Ends, features guest vocals from local artist Lesley Roley who will be performing with Pete on stage at the record launch.

The event at Shotley and Benfieldside Tennis Club in County Durham on Friday November 29 will begin at 7.30pm with a support slot from Jack Burness. Tickets are £4 on the door which also includes a bowl of chili con carne.

To keep informed on all Pete Dilley news or to have a listen to some of his tracks, head to his Facebook or soundcloud pages at www.facebook.com/petedilleymusic or https://soundcloud.com/pete-dilley